A True Fast

Fasting is an important practice in Judaism, tied to many significant holidays and events. Find out how much you know about this ritual with our quiz.

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Question 1 of :

Question 1 Fasting is the act of withholding _____ from the body.

Fasting is when one withholds food from one’s body for a particular amount of time, most often for moral or religious purposes.

Shelter
Sleep
Food
Sinful acts

Question 2 In biblical times, fasting was used when:

The Bible tells us of many instances of fasting, including as a sign of mourning (1 Samuel 31:13), in times of danger (2 Samuel 12:16), and when seeking wisdom from God (Daniel 9:3).

Mourning
Danger threatened
Preparing for divine revelation
All of the above

Question 3 Fasting is not just done as an individual activity, but by communities, as well. When Samuel was leading the Israelites, they fasted to repent for sinning against the Lord before being attacked by the _____.

In 1 Samuel 7:1-6, we see the Israelite people fast and pour water as they confess their sins to the Lord.

Benjaminites
Babylonians
Philistines
Romans

Question 4 Another reason biblical people fasted was to deal with great calamity. The prophet Joel called for fasting after an invasion of:

Joel addressed the Israelites during an invasion of locusts, lamenting, “The fields are ruined, the ground is dried up . . . Despair, you farmers, wail, you vine growers” (Joel 1:10–11). The prophet then ordered the people of Israel to “Declare a holy fast” (Joel 1:14).

Enemies
Locusts
Plague
Frogs

Question 5 Jonah warned the people of which city to fast in order to show their repentance?

After his encounter with the whale, Jonah followed God’s calling and went to Nineveh to minister to the people there. Because of Jonah’s warning, the king of Nineveh decreed his people to fast; their fasting showed God they had turned from evil and the city was spared.

Tarshish
Nineveh
Jaffa
Nazareth

Question 6 The people of Israel asked the prophet Zechariah if they could end the biblical fasts as they were nearing completion of building the _____.

As the post-exile Israelites approached completion of the Second Temple, they asked Zechariah if the biblical fasts could be abolished. He said no.

Tower of Babel
Ark
Golden Calf
Second Temple

Question 7 Isaiah tells us what type of fast is pleasing to God. Which of these is NOT part of such a fast?

In chapter 58, Isaiah tells us, “to loose the chains of injustice . . . to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—when you see the naked, to clothe them” (v. 6–7).

Tightening chains of injustice
Feeding the hungry
Giving shelter to the poor
Clothing the naked

Question 8 The holiest day in Judaism, the Day of Atonement, is also a fast day known as _____.

Yom Kippur, the Jewish Day of Atonement, is the holiest day of the year, which Jews observe with a 25-hour period of fasting and intense prayer. It is known as a fast for repentance.

Yom Kippur
Rosh Hashanah
Sukkot
Passover

Question 9Tisha B’Av is the saddest day on the Jewish calendar and another major fast day in Judaism. It marks:

Tisha B’Av is not only a fast day of mourning, but the saddest day for the Jewish people, marking “the Five Calamities” which include the three above, as well as the Romans crushing Bar Kokhba’s revolt and Roman commander Turnus Rufus plowing under the site of the Temple.

The lack of faith shown by the 12 spies Moses sent to scout out Canaan
The destruction of the First Temple by the Babylonians
The destruction of the Second Temple by the Romans
All of the above

Question 10 Another fast day, called the Seventeenth of Tammuz, leads up to Tisha B’Av. It commemorates the breaching of the walls of _____.

The three-week period leading up to Tisha B’Av begins on the seventeenth day of the Jewish month of Tammuz and marks not only the breaching of Jerusalem’s walls before the Second Temple was destroyed, but also the destruction of the two tablets holding the Ten Commandments.

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